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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25943878">oh, you got light in your eyes</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/HorribleThing/pseuds/HorribleThing'>HorribleThing</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Dimension 20 (Web Series)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Affection, F/M, Kissing, Multi, Sex Jokes, everyone is bi, ignoring the rules of dnd, meeting exes, trying to be a good person, we love himbos here</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 06:42:06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>4,439</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25943878</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/HorribleThing/pseuds/HorribleThing</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Esther Sinclair Gets in over Her Head with Her Stupid Hot Boyfriend &amp; Other Stories</p><p> </p><p>A collection of short fics for The Unsleeping City. Rated M for safety. Tags to be added.</p><p>NEW CHAPTER: Rowan throws an Oscar party. Esther learns some new information about her boyfriend. So does everyone else.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Ricky Matsui/Esther Sinclair, Ricky Matsui/Pete the Plug/Esther Sinclair, Sofia Bicicleta/Ricky Matsui/Pete the Plug/Esther Sinclair</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>39</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>148</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. meet me at the top [Esther/Ricky]</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>When he asks her to kneel on his knees as he does sit-ups, she thinks it will be cute to surprise him by kissing him at the top.  And it is cute.  Ricky’s face is so expressive, his eyebrows rising up in surprise and confusion, his mouth in a small startled ‘o’ before it spreads into a grin.</p><p>“Thanks!” he says cheerfully, always so polite and so delighted by any small bit of affection she gives him, never taking anything for granted. So the next time he sits up she does it again, and he thanks her again. And they repeat it, and he’s so <em> sweet </em> he never looks bored, his eyes brightening with delight every time.</p><p>Ricky’s form is impeccable, and his stamina is kind of obscene (on a lot of different levels).  And he just keeps going?  It takes a while, but he starts to work up a sweat, his hair getting damp and soft, perspiration glinting over muscles that she really wants to touch.  It’s so much worse now that she knows she just can.</p><p>This was a mistake, she realizes. She spent years carefully controlling her emotions, wrapping all her feelings up in neat boxes and denying herself access to them. But doing that now is a choice and not a necessity, and she’s found she has no self restraint when it comes to Ricky. She doesn’t want it.</p><p>Ricky lives by subduing his own desires, so patient about everything, but she’s starting to think maybe she’ll always be a glutton when it comes to him.  Starting to hope that he’ll always indulge her.</p><p>The next time he rises to meet her, she drapes her arms over his shoulders and kisses him long and slow.  She can taste salt on his lips.</p><p>“I didn’t even hit a really big number yet,” he says, and she thinks he might be teasing her a little, as much as he ever would.</p><p>“Can you be done for now anyway?”</p><p>Ricky smiles against her mouth, and shifts to pull her down on top of him.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Ricky knows sit-ups aren't actually an efficient core workout, but sometimes you do things to make your hot wizard girlfriend happy.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. social media was a mistake [esther/ricky/pete]</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Ricky has a question.  Pete has a minor breakdown.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“What’s an ‘only fans’ and why do people keep asking if I have one?” Ricky asks him one Saturday afternoon as he’s scrolling through his feed.  Pete had been half asleep on their couch, dozing to the sound of Esther murmuring as she studied, but now he’s jolting up like someone has shocked him.  His hat falls off his head.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Pete is trying to be a good person, he really is.  He’s trying to accept that his ‘actions’ have ‘consequences’ on other people.  (And also himself?  That part is probably important.)  But fuck if it’s not hard to hear that and start thinking of the numbers.  It feels like his brain is short circuiting, like the world is twisting under his feet, like-</span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When he realizes what’s going on, Esther is rubbing circles on his back and apparently he’s been screaming into a pillow in the bedroom.  They’re surrounded by plants they didn’t own before.  This is not the first wild magic surge he’s had prompted by thirst but it’s the first one prompted by thirst and greed and he feels kind of shitty about it.  But not... </span>
  <em>
    <span>completely</span>
  </em>
  <span> shitty.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know you told me to give him some space but is he okay in there?” Ricky calls from the living room.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Pete intends to say something else but the words “He could make so much money Esther,” come out in a disbelieving hiss.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He’s fine babe!” Esther shouts out towards the hallway.  “Please understand that I know this,” she says quietly towards him. “And I have thought about it while you were having a breakdown.  It is one thing for people to see Ricky naked.  That ship has sailed.  ...It just keeps happening.” She pauses, and he knows she’s also thinking about just how often Ricky will take off his clothes for reasons they will never comprehend and how all the monsters and fae they fight seem to be encouraging it.  Oberon is angling to be some sort of boon based sugar daddy and just won’t drop it.  He’s been showing up at Ricky’s gym.  (He’s offered Ricky way more than three boons by this point.  Rowan is pissed.)</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ricky is ultimately the one to decide what he does with his own body because it’s his body, but </span>
  <em>
    <span>personally</span>
  </em>
  <span> I would prefer to limit the number of people that get to see our boyfriend... intimately. At least to people we’ve all vetted.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey guys?  You never answered my question!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Pete briefly screams into the pillow again. Just for a second.  They’ve got so many potted plants to get rid of, and they’ve already given spider plant babies to like all of their friends.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey Kingston, so I was wondering... would it be ‘unethical’ for me to try and convince Ricky to do porn?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Pete, why are you making me hear these words with my ears?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I just mean ‘theoretically.’  I wouldn’t actually do it!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“When you put the air quotes around the word theoretical it stops seeming like a thought exercise.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“...Is your paternal disappointment because of the ethics or the porn thing?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Kingston has his face in his hands, so Pete can’t tell what the answer is.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Two weeks later when Ricky says, “Oh, it’s a porn thing,” Pete nearly chokes on a dumpling.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>As the voice of the city, Kingston knows just how many people want to see Ricky naked and would prefer not to talk about it.</p>
<p>In another dimension, a group of spectral philosophy students, no longer needed, have a debate.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. people that kissed you before me [sofie/esther/ricky/pete]</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>When there's four people in a relationship, there are gonna be more exes to deal with, and that's just how it is.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>It’s not </span>
  <em>
    <span>good</span>
  </em>
  <span> of him, it’s not </span>
  <em>
    <span>mature</span>
  </em>
  <span>. But when Priya invites him to her next gallery opening, he brings the gang.  And by ‘the gang’ he means his partners. (Does the hat make ‘partners’ weird?) Esther wasn’t there for the last disaster, so she isn’t familiar with Priya’s particular brand of toxic bullshit, so he keeps her closest.  Also because she’s the exact type of woman Priya hates and he knows deep down, okay not even that deep down, he’s petty as fuck.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Peter, I’m so glad you came.  And you brought... a guest… with you.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, this is Esther.  She’s in academia, so I’m sure you two would get along.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Academia?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My focus is really on the illusory nature of the rules we self-construct within distinct geographic groups, New York City being the primary local, obviously.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, that sounds </span>
  <em>
    <span>fascinating</span>
  </em>
  <span>. You’ll have to tell me more about it.” She smiles but he can hear the fake magnanimity in her voice crack. There’s nothing worse to her than a woman who is who she wants to be, but authentically.  Esther is very aware of this.  They planned it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Damn he really upgraded.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They kiss, and there’s tongue, and it’s good, even if it’s a little more intense than what he’s normally down for publicly.  But Esther will practically jump people in public, so he’s still not even sure what her limits are.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks,” he says and he actually means it.  “I better go check on our other partners, though.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>...And there goes the act, there goes the composure.  Priya gapes like a fish.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Other partners?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, there’s Sofie,” he points to Sof, taking advantage of the free wine and charming a pretty big group of people who should be looking at paintings and installations, “And Ricky,” who is staring at a painting, completely perplexed, as a group of Art Twinks touch his biceps and look about ready to devour him, because they don’t know what he’s really like in bed. (</span>
  <em>
    <span>And they never will.</span>
  </em>
  <span>)</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Esther will be happy to talk to you about your art in the meantime though.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh I would </span>
  <em>
    <span>love</span>
  </em>
  <span> to.”  Esther smiles and it feels like she’s sharpening a knife.</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>Sofie looks flustered and agitated, and by this point it’s definitely not because they’re a lesbian bar.  They’ve spent enough date nights here that she’s gotten over her initial jitters.  This isn’t Sofia feeling shy.  This is Sofia internally debating over whether fight or flight is more appropriate.  But Esther doesn’t sense anything magical, so she has no clue what’s prompting it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What’s wrong, kitten?” she asks, her hand on the small of Sofie’s back, pulling her closer.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That chick at the corner of the bar has been giving me the evil eye ever since we got here,” Sofie says, gesturing with a tilt of her head.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Oh.</span>
  </em>
  <span>  It’s </span>
  <em>
    <span>Hazel</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fuck, of course she is.”  She rolls her eyes, pulls Sofie a little closer.  As protective as she can be without her baseball bat.  “I’m very sorry.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh my god, is she your ex-girlfriend?” Sofie asks, a little too loud.  They </span>
  <em>
    <span>are</span>
  </em>
  <span> at a lesbian bar, loudly discovering that someone is someone’s ex is practically ritual here.  But it’s slightly more awkward in this case because it’s distinctly untrue.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, having had sex with someone doesn’t make them your ex. I don’t have any exes.” For years her only ‘commitment’ was trying to break the curse on her and her family. It was too important, too big for her to give her time to other people. More consuming than anything she could imagine. She fucked people, but she didn’t get close.  She didn’t have time.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She didn’t have the strength.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Esther was always afraid that any cracks would split her stone heart open.  But things are different now.  Now, sometimes, she can let herself be soft.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t have any exes,” she says again, and kisses the corner of Sofie’s jaw, right by her ear. And up against her skin she says, “And I don’t plan to.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ms. Sinclair, you charmer,” she says and twists to kiss her briefly. Her eyes are mismatched and sparkling and warm. “I know it’s our date night, but do you wanna spend it at home?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Esther puts down her beer, barely started, not caring that they just got here.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, let’s go home.”</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>He’s prepping his lunches for the week with some of the groceries Pete picked up earlier. (thanks Pete!)  Chopping vegetables and poaching chicken breasts are things he’s done every week for a while now, but it feels different now that he’s doing it in a home he shares with people he loves.  He tries his best to make things for Esther and Pete and Sofie while he’s at it, and even if Sofie says that the way he eats is “a crime and sin against good food,” she’ll still grab veggie sticks to snack on.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He wants to take care of them.  Protect them in the little ways too.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey Ricky?” Pete says, leaning against the counter.  “When I was out I ran into one of the Johns.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Which one?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Uh… well they’re all fuckin jacked.  The one with the tattoos on his arms?  The full sleeves.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh John K!” They worked out together last week, caught up afterwards.  It was really nice! </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeahhhh… he… he, uh wanted to ‘talk’ and got all aggro at me.  A bunch of macho bullshit like ‘if you ever hurt him I’m gonna make you regret it.’  Kind of hard to not be like ‘well I can do magic and I’ve got a gun, so screw you.’  But I </span>
  <em>
    <span>didn’t</span>
  </em>
  <span>.” It’s hard to tell how honest Pete is being about that last part.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sorry.  He’s always been really protective when it comes to guys around me, even after the breakup.” Ricky always thought it was nice, but it’s like he’s had any other actual boyfriends for John to bother. John never gets this way about women, and he could never figure out why.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“...The breakup? What are you talking about?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My breakup with John? He’s my ex boyfriend?” He still cares about John a lot and misses him, but not the way he used to.  Definitely doesn’t miss the way he felt after getting dumped.  Or Emiko trying to set him up to make him feel better.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Pete’s mouth opens and closes, and the way he stares off into space for a minute reminds Ricky of when his phone gets all messed up because he’s forgotten to restart it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Pete?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hmmm?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You okay?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Pete clears his throat.  “He’s… uh… he seems like a big guy, is all.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, he can lift a little more than me.” Ricky was always kind of surprised they picked him instead of John for the calendar. But people never pay as much attention to him for some reason, even though he’s really good looking.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, that’s not… he’s got </span>
  <em>
    <span>big hands</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”  Pete says and Ricky nods in response. This is definitely true but he doesn’t understand why Pete is bringing it up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ricky, he was wearing sweatpants.” Why does Pete care about what John was wearing? “You know what, never mind. ...God I can’t believe you dated a guy like that. I mean look at him, and then look at- Are you two still close? Because he got really intense about things, took shit way too personally for an ex-boyfriend. What went down? Does he still-” And Ricky doesn’t understand why Pete is freaking out, but he knows that he is. He knows that Pete gets in his own head and gets insecure and self loathing, which is confusing to him because Pete is so amazing and he loves him (and Esther and Sofie) in ways he never knew he could love back when he was with John. He knows he doesn’t want to see anyone spiral like this, but especially not someone he loves.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Pete?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He runs his hand down Pete’s arm where the sleeve of his brightly patterned shirt is rolled up until he can drag his thumb over his knuckles.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m kind of into guys with tattoos.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Oh</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Nice.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yours are really cool.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Th-thanks, man,” Pete says, grabbing a cucumber slice and popping it into his mouth. As Ricky finishes packing everything up, Pete leans against his side, and Ricky is glad that he’s there.</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay everyone, smile!” she says, rapidly taking pictures of her favorite people on heaven and earth. She got an enchanted camera that lets her capture all of them, and while Dale has five minutes she’s gonna make the most of it. Seeing him squeezed in tight with the other people he’s happy about her loving makes her heart feel like she’s on top of the Empire State Building again. Like the whole world is in front of her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Get in here!” Pete calls, waving here over, and Ricky grabs the camera and quickly arranges them all to compose the perfect group selfie, because no one here is as good at that as he is. And she’s surrounded by people she loves, Pete’s arm draped over her shoulder and Esther leaning in close to him and Dale’s hand on her waist and Ricky behind her. And at one point her heart was broken. At one point she thought she was never gonna love anyone again, the world was a bullshit place and maybe love just wasn’t meant for her. Back then she couldn’t dream of this much love, but now she wakes up in the morning filled with it and she’s gonna keep feeling it every day. Some of those days are work, like when Esther forgets everything for studying or Pete gets jealous or Ricky doesn’t understand that he’s encouraging his stalkers, but that work is always gonna be worth it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>When Ricky snaps the picture he doesn’t have to tell them to smile, because they all already are.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I am sorry for my bad opinions but not so sorry that I'm not publishing this.</p><p>EDIT: I forgot to say that the original planned ending of this was less tender and more Dale and Esther arguing about the fact that Esther was committing tax fraud because it's not like they could prove that magic is real.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. girl talk [esther and sofie, esther/ricky]</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Sofie's just asking about her best friend's sex life at the club. You know, like you do.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Uh this one may be extremely short but it earns its M rating. (I say like I didn't write a dick joke in the last chapter.) These characters are adults and they talk about sex!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>They’re out at some fae club in Nod that Rowan dragged them to. Sofia is off to the side and several sparkly cocktails in, because even though she likes dancing, she likes talking with Esther more. So they’re people/pixie watching and making sure that none of the people they care about make mistakes they can’t contractually get out of. At some point Rowan realized that if she danced with Ricky </span>
  <em>
    <span>everyone</span>
  </em>
  <span> would pay attention to her and them. And it’s hard to ignore. Rowan is stunning and light on her feet and literally glowing and Ricky is </span>
  <em>
    <span>Ricky</span>
  </em>
  <span>. He’s so gorgeous with so many muscles and Dale may be the light of her life and also his death, but Dale has never moved his hips like </span>
  <em>
    <span>that</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Did it just get really warm?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>(Pete is… also there. He is not a good dancer, but god does the boy try.)</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Esther, he is so dreamy. Why didn’t you just ask him to fuck before? I have eyes. You clearly wanted to.  You don’t have to be in a relationship to have sex.” Sofia would like to think she’s a pretty modern woman. Running a secret martial arts monastery, occasionally getting to mess around with her angel husband. Having it all! And she and Dale fooled around before they got serious. Esther has gotta be at least as liberated as she is. She reads so many books.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Taking a swig of her beer, Esther sighs and stares off into space in that way she does when someone touches on her tragic and extremely shitty backstory. Gets that distant wizard-y look in her eyes. “I’ve hooked up with lots of people but Ricky was different. Because with Ricky I knew... if I found out he wasn’t down to try pegging, I would fall into a sorrow from which there would be no return.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That’s a lot. That’s a lot to think about. And potentially (probably) imagine.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That… that end up working out?” she asks, fanning herself. Why is it so warm? Someone needs to open a window or send a magical talking whirlwind through or something. Rowan would probably hit on it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Esther grins at her like the cat that got a whole flock of canaries. “Do I look sad to you?”</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Esther Sinclair is the second horniest character in The Unsleeping City, in this essay I will-</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. soft, warm [esther/ricky]</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Ricky has a secret for about thirty seconds.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Ricky comes in holding something behind his back, and she knows it’s not flowers because he never hides those. (He’s careful with flowers like he’s careful with everything he doesn’t have to fight, his strong hands touch the world with reverence.) He looks sheepish and flustered, like a big lovable dog that has been caught being naughty. But he’s Ricky, so good and so </span>
  <em>
    <span>pure</span>
  </em>
  <span>, so she has no clue what something wrong could be. It’s not like he’s prone to impulse shopping like Pete is, except when he </span>
  <em>
    <span>is</span>
  </em>
  <span> because he sees her in the world and the world in her, and is always bringing home trinkets that he hopes will make her happy.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Esther, promise you won’t get mad… no, that’s not fair to you. Esther please try not to get mad,” and he looks so worried she wants to feel bad for him, her heart is half there already, but those words aren’t exactly a comfort.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ricky, what did you do?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“An unhoused man and the kittens he’s been looking after were drowning in the river, so I went in and got them all out…” This is not surprising. This is the type of thing Ricky does on a regular basis. This is not what he thinks is going to upset her. If this type of thing upset her, they wouldn’t have lasted a month. (If this type of thing upset her, she wouldn’t think it was so fucking hot.)</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And after I did, this shot out of the water,” and he pulls it from behind him. And it takes her a moment to process, because she’s certain she isn’t seeing it until she’s certain she’s wrong.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“...</span>
  <em>
    <span>Another questing blade?</span>
  </em>
  <span>”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It says that it doesn’t know what shape to take for an outreach program, so it’s just going to stay an axe for now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Esther wants to bang her head against the wall, pull at her hair. She is a wizard. She thinks about rules. She thinks about numbers, and statistics, and the laws that govern the </span>
  <em>
    <span>universe</span>
  </em>
  <span>. A person can’t just give away their questing blade and then get a second one. The likelihood of that is brain breaking. Her brain is breaking right now.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The axe doesn’t give a shit and glows with holy light.  Ricky puts it down carefully.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Also one of the kittens wanted to stay with me?” he says, opening his coat and removing a tiny kitten from the interior breast pocket. She’s coming closer before she can stop herself, trying not to coo over how it purrs sleepily. Being lulled into contentment by the comforting warmth of Ricky Matsui’s massive tits is highly relatable. The kitten has excellent taste and she likes it instantly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Here, hold it,” he says passing this little furry sphere over to her. It’s black with one white paw, and a patch on its forehead shaped like a star. It yawns and looks up at her with bright blue eyes. “It made me think of magic, just like you.” Esther has never had a pet before, it was too risky before the curse lifted. And now she’s tearing up. Fantastic. Stupid cute cat, stupid perfect boyfriend.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’re going to talk about you bringing home a cat without talking to me first </span>
  <em>
    <span>later</span>
  </em>
  <span>, and about what </span>
  <em>
    <span>that</span>
  </em>
  <span> means,” she says, motioning towards the axe with her hand that isn’t now cradling the kitten against her shoulder, and oh- it just nuzzled against her. “But now you need to go out and get cat supplies.” It’s her turn for bonding.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Awesome.” He kisses her before heading back out the door. What good is their dangerous life without a little sweetness?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>(Axiom ends up liking Ricky best, but it’s not like Esther can blame her.)</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Ricky starts posting pics of Ox and Axiom cuddled together and gets even more followers and it's a problem.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. glamor and glitter [esther/ricky]</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Rowan throws an Oscar party. Esther learns some new information about her boyfriend. So does everyone else.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This is mostly Esther/Ricky but there's some pre Esther/Ricky/Sofie in there because it just kind of happened and who am I to stop it?</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Misty Moore’s Oscar parties used to be the stuff of legends. All of Broadway's best would gather together for delightful canapes and extremely strong cocktails to make fun of Hollywood’s inferior actors. The paparazzi would wait outside her building because something would inevitably happen during or after and someone would inevitably wind up in the news. People would talk about them until it was time for the next one, only taking a break for Tony Season.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Rowan Berry does not have the fame or connections of Misty Moore (yet), so she had to invite them instead. She only seems mildly disappointed by this fact, so Esther guesses they should be grateful. It’s weird interacting with her without Ricky there. She’s infinitely less punchable when she’s not groping Esther’s boyfriend. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>(Sofie also gropes Ricky sometimes, but Esther actually likes her so she can get away with it).</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Esther doesn’t even care about the Oscars, the movies she likes most are usually a little too indie or a little too foreign to get nominated, but Pete had begged her because Rowan had begged him and now she and Sofie are squished together on part of the couch. Getting to hear all of Sofie’s catty little comments about hair and styling is making the evening </span>
  <em>
    <span>much</span>
  </em>
  <span> better than she thought it was going to be.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh my god in five years everyone is going to be talking about what a mistake that dress is,” Sof says into her ear. “Definitely not her color. Maybe color doesn’t matter when your boobs look so good though.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Esther snorts into her tea.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Kingston talks about which movies he’s seen, which turns out to be most of them because date nights with Liz have been going </span>
  <em>
    <span>very</span>
  </em>
  <span> well, and Rowan gives them all the gossip about who can’t act on stage and who is an even bigger diva than she is, and Pete soaks up every word like the simp he is. By the time Rowan gives the doorman permission to let Ricky up they have consumed an enormous amount of junk food (for people so skinny, Rowan and Pete can eat a terrifying amount of wings) and are several awards categories and very awkward comedy bits in. Ricky leans over the back of the couch to give her a kiss on the cheek, and he squeezes Sofie’s shoulder. If things go the way they normally do, they’ll probably both end up half on his lap again. She can’t say that she’s opposed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How’d it go?” she asks him softly enough that everyone can still listen to the ceremony, and he smiles.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Got all the cancelled catering orders to the shelters, and found as many people as I could to let them know about it. It was good.” She kisses him again, maybe for a bit longer (way longer) than she should, and breaks away at the sound of applause from the speakers.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“She deserved that win,” Kingston says, pointing at the screen, because he acts older than he is. “No one was even close.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ricky looks up then, and he lights up like a puppy whose owner just pulled into the driveway. “Oh, it’s Anna!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You act like you’re on a first name basis with Anna Lee.” She rolls her eyes and okay maybe she’s instinctively a little jealous. Ricky has never shown interest in actresses or models before. This is new and she’s never had to deal with it. He blinks at her slowly, completely confused.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“...I told you my high school girlfriend has been in some movies.” His words ricochet through her head, and like so many other times she is blindsided by his impossible existence.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“‘</span>
  <em>
    <span>Some movies?</span>
  </em>
  <span>’ She’s winning an Oscar, Ricky!” Okay that was louder than she planned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“...This was her third nomination…” Pete says, a little awed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I hadn’t heard of anything she’s been in, so I didn’t think it was a big deal?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Wait, your high school girlfriend is an actress and you hadn’t seen any plays before?” Rowan looks suspicious and hopefully just as jealous as she does right now. For her it’s probably over the award </span>
  <em>
    <span>and</span>
  </em>
  <span> the theoretical fucking. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh her parents didn’t let her act in school, she was supposed to go into pre-med at Duke before she went to LA.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>This is a known thing. Anna Lee is gorgeous, quite possibly the best actress of her generation, and practically a genius. She’s also apparently the one that taught Ricky everything he already knew about how to treat a woman when they first got together, so she doesn’t know whether to thank her or throw her popcorn right now. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“-My agent, Linda, for bringing my roles that challenge me and change my life.” Anna says through the screen. She is radiant. She is a style icon. When she smiles she glows. “And Ricky! Back when no one believed in me, you did. Your support was what got me through though those first years in LA, and I miss you all the time.” The orchestra starts playing. “Chris has seen your insta and he thinks you’re super hot, too, so get back in touch!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“...Did he just get propositioned for a threesome via an Oscar acceptance speech?” Sofie asks her, and popcorn gets thrown.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s nice that she misses me,” he says fondly.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>"I can feel a Mr. March headache coming on."<br/>"Do you want me to get the Mr. March ibuprofen, darling?"</p><p> </p><p>Had to get this out while I slowly pick away at a Esther/Ricky/Pete that I'm not even sure anyone else would care about. A ceramics department art school AU might be a little too self-indulgent, even for me. Not everyone cares about the inherent eroticism of hot guys working with clay. And also people trying to get their lives back on track after they've been derailed.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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